6 Tips For Selling Music Merch at Live ShowsSelling music merch at live shows can boost income and deepen fan connections. Learn how to pick the right products, set prices, and create an unforgettable experience to maximize merch sales.
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Plugin Alliance SPL Machine HeadSPL's Machine Head is the finest digital tape saturator ever built. With the tone of tape becoming so popular in pro production circles, this discontinued hardware is in demand. Many plugin developers... Read More

IK Multimedia TONEX ONE Joe Satriani Pedal Pedal comes preloaded with 20 presets created by Satriani himself, along with access to his entire TONEX Amp Vault Signature Collection

Focal launches new top-line Utopia Main studio monitors – and they don’t come cheapNAMM 2025: Focal has introduced its latest line of professional studio monitors: Utopia Main. Currently, the line consists of the 3-way Main 112 and 3.5-way Main 212. After working on them since 2017, these new models overtake the Focal ST6 as the French audio equipment manufacturer’s top-level monitors for professional applications.
Operating since 1979, Focal poured its nearly 50 years of experience into the Utopia Main. All three drivers within the monitors – tweeter, midrange, and subwoofer – were built with patented technologies from Focal. The 1.5” Beryllium tweeter promises clear transients that aren’t harsh on the ears, the 5” midrange uses the M profile shape for maximum transparency, and the 13” subwoofers are braced within the cabinet to prevent cabinet warping.

READ MORE: NAMM 2025 Live: Latest rumours, news and products from the biggest music technology show in the world

While the Main 112 features one of each driver, the 212 features two midrange drivers and two subwoofers.
Credit: Focal
Another notable aspect of the Utopia Main is the amplification system, which applies current mode control. This means that where other monitors regulate the voltage, Utopia Main regulates the current. This enables them to control the force on the driver membrane to help remove any unwanted artefacts.
Other than its in-house team, Focal called upon producers, mixers, and mastering engineers with over 70 Grammy nominations between them to test the Utopia Main monitors to ensure the best performance possible.
“The Utopia Main range inherits over forty years of Focal know-how and twenty years of innovation in the development of studio monitors. Each component has been meticulously thought out to design exceptional main monitors, delivering a very high level of accuracy, even at high SPL,” says Focal.
As the new premier monitors from Focal, they don’t come cheap. According to Forbes, The UM 112 monitors are priced at $30,000/£22,000/€26,000, while the UM 212 model is priced at $50,000/£38,000/€46,000.
For more info, head to Focal.
The post Focal launches new top-line Utopia Main studio monitors – and they don’t come cheap appeared first on MusicTech.

Excite Audio’s Bloom Bass Groove offers “soulful bass with modern flair”NAMM 2025: After expanding its Bloom range of simply-designed plugins late last year with the Bloom Drum Machine, Excite Audio has announced its latest addition to the line, Bloom Bass Groove.
“Meticulously sampled from real electric bass performances by professionals”, Bloom Bass Groove offers slapped, fingered and picked bass tones – alongside a range of articulations and performance one-shots – housed in the Bloom line’s distinctively simple UI.

READ MORE: NAMM 2025 Live: Latest rumours, news and products from the biggest music technology show in the world

Bloom Bass Groove also boasts an intuitive Phrase Player feature, which allows you to switch between different riffs, playing styles, and articulations, “mirroring the dynamics and intricacies of a real-life bass performance”.

“Excite Audio built Bloom Bass Groove with a focus on capturing the nuances of live bass performances with a combination of slaps, muted one-shots, and dynamic playing styles, delivering the expressive quality achievable only through real bass performances,” the brand says.
Bloom Bass Groove is available now via Plugin Boutique, at an introductory price of £39, later rising to £59. There’s also a Lite version at an intro price of £19 – later rising to £29 – and a Bloom Bundle option including Bloom Bass Groove and other Excite Audio Bloom plugins for £119.
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For more information, head to Excite Audio.
The post Excite Audio’s Bloom Bass Groove offers “soulful bass with modern flair” appeared first on MusicTech.

Beyerdynamic launches four new in-ear monitors catering to different needsNAMM 2025: Beyerdynamic is launching four new in-ear monitors, with each catering to different types of musicians and their needs.
The DT 70 IE, DT 71 IE, DT 72 IE and DT 73 IE all feature beyerdynamic’s TESLA.11 dynamic driver system, said to offer “superior resolution and clarity with minimal distortion”. Developed in Germany, each pair has high impulse fidelity for detailed sound reproduction, and with a maximum SPL of 137dB, the brand believes they’re some of the loudest, lowest-distortion systems soon-to-be on the market.

READ MORE: NAMM 2025 Live: Latest rumours, news and products from the biggest music technology show in the world

Each pair comes with five different sized silicone eartips and three pairs of Comply memory foam eartips for better comfort and sound insulation. Let’s unpack what each pair can offer:

DT 70 IE for mixing and critical listening – Beyerdynamic says these offer a balanced sound signature ideal for studio professionals and audiophiles. A linear tuning that follows the Fletcher-Munson curve ensures accurate low frequencies and treble reproduction at any volume, and their acoustic tuning makes them ideal for evaluating mixes and live sound.
DT 71 IE for drummers and bassists – These deliver “powerful bass and clear treble”, with a sound that enhances low frequencies while ensuring detailed reproduction of cymbals, percussion and bass guitar overtones. Slightly reduced mids provide added clarity and transparency to promote precise timing.
DT 72 IE for guitarists and singers – With a natural sound balance for enhanced clarity, the DT 72IEs have subtly tuned bass providing a foundation without overwhelming lows, while natural low mids ensure transparency. The frequency response between 200-500 Hz compensates for the “occlusion effect,” preventing muffled sound.
DT 73 IE for orchestral musicians, pianists, and keyboard players – These deliver natural bass and mid-range with precise treble overtones, and have a linear sound reproduction between 20 Hz and 1 kHz for an accurate and authentic representation of every note. Ideal for orchestral musicians striving for tonal precision, they have a subtle treble boost from 5 kHz upwards to enhance overtones, allowing musicians to hear intricate harmonic details clearly.

The new IEMs will be showcased at NAMM, where beyerdynamic will also host live performances by Grammy-nominated artist, composer, and producer Cory Henry, as well as singer-songwriter Gina Miles, who won The Voice US back in 2023. The pair will of course be putting these new products into use.
The new beyerdynamic IEMs will be available in spring 2025 via the beyerdynamic e-shop for $499.99. Find out more by catching the team at NAMM, located in Hall A #11702.
The post Beyerdynamic launches four new in-ear monitors catering to different needs appeared first on MusicTech.

Overloud announce refreshed THU v2 This upgraded release introduces a completely redesigned interface, which is shared across the entire THU range.

Heritage Audio releases HA1200 TapeSat, a native plugin based on a vintage Ampex tape recorder owned by the company’s CEONAMM 2025: Heritage Audio has released HA1200 TapeSat, a new plugin that helps producers achieve an authentic tape sound. This product is specifically modelled after the 16-channel Ampex MM-1200 tape recorder that Peter Rodriguez, CEO of Heritage Audio, bought when he was 19 years old.
Rodriguez still uses the historic machine for his personal recordings, and now he has built a plugin that delivers the same sound colour without costing the high price of purchasing one today. Furthermore, while HA1200 TapeSat was already available as a DSP to users of Heritage Audio’s i73 PRO family of products, as a native plugin, non i73 PRO users can now apply that classic tape aesthetic to their music.

READ MORE: NAMM 2025 Live: Latest rumours, news and products from the biggest music technology show in the world

Within HA1200 TapeSat’s interface, there is a knob labeled “TAPE” that selects between five NOS (New Old Stock) tape sounds: 250, 456, 499, 911, and GP9. All five are known for certain sonic qualities. For example, 250 provides a fuller warmth, whereas 911 is a favourite for emphasising the low and high end of the frequency spectrum.
“The HA 1200 TapeSat gives you that sought after true analog sound of tape, allowing you to quickly add punch, warmth and depth to your vocals, synths, guitars and more. Getting that special je ne sais quoi of the Golden Era of Recording is now easier than ever,” says Heritage Audio.
The native version of HA1200 TapeSat is available now, priced at $99/€99.
For more info, head to Heritage Audio.
The post Heritage Audio releases HA1200 TapeSat, a native plugin based on a vintage Ampex tape recorder owned by the company’s CEO appeared first on MusicTech.

Waves Audio’s new Sync Vx plugin is a one-stop solution for all your vocal editing needsNAMM 2025: Waves Audio has launched Sync Vx, a new plugin designed to simplify and enhance vocal alignment for producers and engineers.
Sync Vx streamlines the process of matching time and pitch across multiple vocal tracks, resulting in tighter, more polished vocal arrangements. Users can assign multiple reference tracks, fine-tune pitch and timing, or get creative with transposition and formant manipulation—all without leaving the plugin.
For post-production engineers handling ADR tasks, Sync Vx provides an efficient and precise way to match the time of re-recording dialogue to the original performance.

READ MORE: NAMM 2025 Live: Latest rumours, news and products from the biggest music technology show in the world

With Sync Vx, you can say goodbye to chaotic sessions and endless hours spent manually syncing backing vocals and doubles with the lead vocal. The plugin tightens your vocal tracks in seconds, automatically aligning and locking the time and pitch of multiple vocal tracks to your lead performance in a way that Waves claims is “as precise as detailed manual work”.
As mentioned, Sync Vx helps with speeding up post-production workflow considerably. Users can assign up to four reference tracks, and all vocal alignment tasks — no matter how complex — can be managed within one easy-to-edit plugin window. Additional features like a resizable GUI, Ignore, Bypass and Sync Markers, along with customisable shortcuts, enable you to create a workflow tailored to your needs.
In addition to aligning multiple vocal tracks that have already been recorded, the plugin can also help improve the timing of a specific performance: If a singer does not deliver perfect phrasing, you can record your own voice and use its groove as a reference to easily nudge them into place.
Sync Vx is now available at an introductory price of $129.99 (U.P. $199).

Learn more at Waves Audio.
The post Waves Audio’s new Sync Vx plugin is a one-stop solution for all your vocal editing needs appeared first on MusicTech.

He Wrote/Produced 10 #1 Hit Songs: Stargate’s Tor Hermansen on How To Do ItThis week, Ari is joined by Tor Hermansen, from the production/songwriter duo Stargate, to discuss writing and producing global hits.

Bitcoin holds above $106K as traders bite nails over the absence of Trump crypto executive orderBitcoin price bounces back above $106,000 as the US Dollar Index cools and markets react positively to Trump’s pro-America agenda.

Scale AI’s Alexandr Wang has published an open letter lobbying Trump to invest in AIScale AI's CEO Alexandr Wang has five recommendations for President Trump to keep the US ahead of China on AI.
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Interactive LED Matrix Is A Great Way To Learn About Motion ControlsIt’s simple enough to wire up an LED matrix and have it display some pre-programmed routines. What can be more fun is when the LEDs are actually interactive in some regard. [Giulio Pons] achieved this with his interactive LED box, which lets you play with the pixels via motion controls.
The build runs of a Wemos D1 mini, which is a devboard based around the ESP8266 microcontroller. [Giulio] hooked this up to a matrix of WS2812B addressable LEDs in two 32×8 panels, creating a total display of 512 RGB LEDs. The LEDs are driven with the aid of an Adafruit graphics library that lets the whole display be addressed via XY coordinates. For interactivity, [Giulio] added a MPU6050 3-axis gyroscope and accelerometer to the build. Meanwhile, power is via 18650 lithium-ion cells, with the classic old 7805 regulator stepping down their output to a safe voltage. Thanks to the motion sensing abilities of the MPU6050, [Giulio] was able to code animations where the LEDs emulate glowing balls rolling around on a plane.
It’s a simple build, but one that taught [Giulio] all kinds of useful skills—from working with microcontrollers to doing the maths for motion controls. There’s a lot you can do with LED matrixes if you put your mind to it, and if you just start experimenting, you’re almost certain to learn something. Video after the break.

Antelope Audio’s A4-1B “reimagines” the CL-1B compressor for $2,995 — here’s what makes it specialNAMM 2025: “The wait is over,” says pro audio brand Antelope Audio as it announces the A4-1B Tube-Optical compressor. Better known for its line of DSP-powered audio interfaces, the A4-1B is the brand’s first hardware analogue processor, promising that it marks the “future of analogue gear,” thanks to unique features such as digitally-controlled potentiometers.
The A4-1B is based on Tube-Tech’s legendary CL-1B Opto-Tube compressor from 1987, hailed by many as the gold standard of vocal compressors. As expected, Antelope Audio’s rendition appears to maintain much of the original’s characteristics but introduces some new features for modern studio workflows.
READ MORE: NAMM 2025 Live: Latest rumours, news and products from the biggest music technology show in the world
Sporting an all-analogue signal path, the A4-1B is built with high-quality components, including custom UK-manufactured transformers and premium tubes, according to Antelope. There are also three calibration types to ensurethe  “long-term reliability” of the compressor’s tubes.
“Even when pushed to the limit”, says Antelope, “the compressor remains transparent, breathing new life into vocal tracks, bass, keys, or percussion.”
Ok, so what makes this compressor so “revolutionary”? Well, Antelope says that the A4-1B’s digital features are the key to “unlocking [its] full potential.” You can tweak the parameters of the compressor with an accompanying VST/AU/AAX plugin in your DAW, or as a standalone desktop app. And here’s the cool part — thanks to motorized potentiometers, the A4-1B will respond in real-time to any changes you make in the digital control panel.

That tech also allows you to automate each parameter via your DAW, so you could, for example, draw in and record changes in the compressor’s threshold throughout your track. It’s also useful for preset selections and A/B testing — you can quickly flit between presets in the digital control panel and the A4-1B will respond accordingly.
In addition, a sidechain function is included on the A4-1B, plus high-, low- and band-pass filters, and a de-esser. Antelope says these are “unlockable extras to the digital-only feature set of the unit.”
Check out Antelope Audio’s samples of the A4-1B’s effect below.

You can learn more and reserve an A4-1B now for $2,995 via the Antelope Audio website.
If you’re looking for a software alternative, you could try the Softube Tube-Tech CL-1B Mk II, which is available for around $200.
Read more NAMM news.
The post Antelope Audio’s A4-1B “reimagines” the CL-1B compressor for $2,995 — here’s what makes it special appeared first on MusicTech.

FireAid confirms official lineups for Intuit Dome and Kia ForumThe benefit concerts aim to raise funds for communities impacted by the Southern California wildfires
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